Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1887-04-30
CHAPTER 1.
LILY YIsIToR.

MY VISITOR.
There are some events Of which every cir
cumstance and surrounding detail seems to
be craven on tho memory In such fashion that
@e cannot forget IT, and so it is with the
scene that ] am about to describe. 1t rises
as clearly before my mind of this moment as
though it bad happened yesterday.
1t was in this very month, something over
twenty years ago, that !, Ludwig Horace
Holly, was sitting one night in my rooms al
Cambridge grinding away at some mathe-
NAUTICAL work, forget what was TO 60 up
for my fellowship within week, anA was ex-
pected by my tutor and my college generally
to distinguish myself. At last, wearied out,
| flung my book down, and, going to the
mantelpiece, took down a pipe and filed it,
There was candle ba1ning on the mantel-
piece, and long, narrow glass at the back Of
it.; and as l was in the act of lighting the
pipe caught sight of my own countenance
in tue glass and paused to reflect. The lighted
match burned away till it scorched my fin
gers, forcing Inc TO drop it, but still stood
and stared at myself In the glass and re-
fected.
"Well," said aloud, at last, "it Is to be
hoped that shall be able to do something
with the inside Of my head, for | shall GER
tainly never do anything by the help Of the
outside"
This remark will doubtless strike anybody
who reads it as being slightly obscure, but l
was in reality elluding to my physical de-
dciencies. Most men of twenty-five are EN-
dowed at any rate with some share Of tho
comeliness Of youth, but to me even this was
denied. Short, thickset, and deep chested
almost to deformity, with long, sinewy arms,
heavy features, deep set gray eyes, low
brow half overgrown with q mop of thick
black hair, like deserted clearing on which
the forest had once more begun to ejloroaoii--
such was my appearance nearly quarter Of
q century ago, and such, with some modifica-
ton, is it to this day. Like Cain, was
branded--branded by nature with the stamp
Of abnormal ugliness, as | was gifted by nc,
ture with iron and abnormal strength and
considerable intellectual powers So ugly
was that the spruce young men of my col
lege, though they were proud enough Of my
feats of endurance and physical proves, did
not even care to be seen walking with me.
Was it wonderful that l was misanthropic
and sullen9 Was it wonderful that brooded
and worked alone, and had no friends--at
least only one' | was set apart by Nature to
live alone and draw comfort from her breast,
and hers only. Women hated the sight Of
me. Only week before l had heard one
call me a monster" whom she thought was
out of hearing, and say that had converted
her to Darwins theory Once, indeed, wo-
man pretended to care for me, and / lavished
MI the pent-up affection of my nature upon
her. Then money that was to have come to
me went elsewhere, and she discarded me. |
pleaded with her as have never pleaded with
any living creature before or since, for ] was
caught by her sweet face, and loved her; and
in the end, by way of answer, she took me to
the glass, and stood side by side with me, and
looked into it.
"Now," sho said, "if ! am Beauty who are
youp ana cursed her and fed. That was
when wac only 20.
And so | stood and stared, and felt q sort
of grim satisfaction in the sense of my own
loneliness-for had neither father nor
mother nor brother and as did there came
knock at my door.
listened before | went to open it, for it
was nearly IL o'clock at night, and was in
no mood to admit any stranger. | had but
one friend in the college, or, indeed, in the
world; perhaps it was he.
just then the person outside the door
coughed, and hastened to open it, for l
knew the cough.
A tall man Of about so, with the remains
Of great personal beauty, came hurrying in,
staggering beneath the weight of massive
iron box which he carried by q handle in his
right hand. He placed the box upon the
table, and then fell into an awful fit of cough
ing. lie coughed and coughed till his face
became quite purple, and ut last ho sunk into
a chair and began to spit up blood Ipoured
out some whisky into a tumbler and gave it
to HIM. He drank it and seemed better,
though his better was very bad indeed.
''Why did you Keep me standing there in
the codp he asked; ''you know the draughts
are death to me-"
81 did not know who it was,n answered
"You are late VISITOR
ayes; and verify believe it is my last
visit, +" he answered, with a ghastly attempt
at q SMILE II am done for, Holly-I am done
for. do not believe that shall sec to-mor-
rowp
"NonsenseI" l said. "Let me go for doc
tor"
He waved me bacl, irnperiously with his
hand ut is sober sense; but want no doc
tors have studied medicine, and know
all about it. No doctors can help me. Ny
last hour has comet For a year past have
only lived by miracle. Now listen to me as
YOU u ,ver listened TO anybody before, for you
viii not have the opportunity OF getting me
to repeat my words. We have been friends
( for two years; now tell me how much do you
! know about mel"
Il know that you are rich, and have had q
fancy to come TO college long after the age
that most men leave it / know that you
have been married, and that your wife died;
and that you have been the best, indeed, al
nlest the only friend, ever had"